Manimeldura Leon Perera (born 1 January 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Oberliga Niedersachsen club Lüneburger SK Hansa. Born in Germany, he plays for the Sri Lanka national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Manimeldura Leon Perera | ||
| Date of birth | 1 January 1997 | ||
| Place of birth | Hamburg, Germany | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Lüneburger SK Hansa | ||
| Number | 13 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2015 | MTV Treubund Lüneburg | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2024 | MTV Treubund Lüneburg | 147 | (30) |
| 2024– | Lüneburger SK Hansa | 25 | (5) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2024– | Sri Lanka | 16 | (2) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 31 May 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 9 October 2025 | |||
Early life
editPerera was born in Hamburg, Germany, to a Sri Lankan father and German mother.[1][2]
Club career
editPerera came through the youth ranks of MTV Treubund Lüneburg and made his senior debut in 2015.[1]
In June 2024, he joined Lüneburger SK Hansa.[3][4][5]
International career
editIn 2022, Perera was invited by the Football Federation of Sri Lanka for trials during Sri Lanka's brief training camp in Doha, Qatar.[1] On 22 March 2024, he made his international debut for the Sri Lanka national team during a goalless draw against Papua New Guinea in the 2024 FIFA Series.[6] On 10 September 2024, Perera converted the final penalty as Sri Lanka defeated Cambodia in tiebreakers in the 2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification – play-off round.[7][8][9]
Perera scored his first international goal on 5 June 2025 in a friendly match against Brunei.[10]
Career statistics
editInternational
edit- As of 9 October 2025[11]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sri Lanka | 2024 | 9 | 0 |
| 2025 | 7 | 2 | |
| Total | 16 | 2 | |
- Scores and results list Sri Lanka's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 5 June 2025 | Alpine Football Camp, Bangkok, Thailand |  Brunei |
1–0 | 1–0 | Friendly |
| 2. | 9 October 2025 | Colombo Racecourse, Colombo, Sri Lanka |  Turkmenistan |
2027 AFC Asian Cup qualification | ||
References
edit- 1 2 3 "FIFA Series in March: SL-origin players called up to strengthen National Pool". The Morning. 23 February 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ "Overseas Football Players who are eligible to Represent Sri Lank". Sri Lankan Sports TV. 26 November 2020. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ "Leon Perera - Nationalspieler aus Sri Lanka - wechselt zu unserem LSK!". lsk-hansa.de. 26 June 2024. Archived from the original on 14 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ Pott, Ulrich (26 June 2024). "LSK verpflichtet Leon Perera vom MTV Treubund Lüneburg für Landesliga". www.landeszeitung.de. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ "Lüneburger SK verpflichtet sri-lankischen Nationalspieler". FuPa. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. "Sri Lanka vs. Papua New Guinea 2024-03-22". National Football Teams. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
- ↑ Oelkers, Michel (12 September 2024). "Leon Perera schießt Sri Lanka zur Asien Cup-Qualifikation!". lsk-hansa.de. Archived from the original on 14 September 2024. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ Sydeen, Mustaq (10 September 2024). "SL create history as they beat Cambodia on penalties". ceylontoday.lk. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ Siddhique, Aathif (10 September 2024). "Sri Lanka book their spot in the AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers after a thrilling penalty shootout". thepapare.com. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
- ↑ Wijewickrama, Navod (6 June 2025). "Dillon & Leon combine to end 16-year winless drought". thepapare.com. Retrieved 9 October 2025.
- ↑ "Leon Perera". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 14 September 2024.
External links
edit- Leon Perera at Soccerway